The Yale School of Medicine is conducting a critical study of COVID-19 and child care programs and would like your input.

Child care providers across the nation are taking part in the confidential survey using a secured online survey platform. The survey (12-20 minutes) is asking a series of questions about COVID-19 exposure potential and symptoms, as well as different methods of reducing the spread of COVID-19 that providers may or may not have used.

This is one of the largest workforce epidemiological studies ever attempted. To learn more about this study and how you can participate, click here.

Providers on Probation who selected the Department of Education-Approved Staff Development Plan must complete the required training. Due to the current travel ban and social-distancing guidelines, all instructor-led courses are canceled until further notice.

In an effort to support Providers on Probation and other preschool educators taking the online courses, the VPK Regional Facilitators will offer Virtual Study Buddies sessions for each course included in the Department of Education-approved Staff Development Plan.

The Virtual Study Buddies sessions are recommended for participants who have completed the specified online course but have not yet completed the end-of-course assessment. Each session provides a high-level review of the online course content while allowing time for the Regional Facilitators to answer participant questions about the course.

The Virtual Study Buddies sessions will be available to providers beginning June 1. Use these resources to learn more and how to register for Virtual Study Buddies sessions:

• Virtual Study Buddies Flyer, click here.
• Eventbrite Registration Information, click here.
• June Sessions for Virtual Study Buddies, click here.

To help the community during this trying time, the University of Central Florida Division of Continuing Education is making some of its most popular online professional development courses available for free.

These self-paced programs include Twelve Steps to a Successful Job Search, Small Business Marketing on a Shoestring, Fundamentals of Supervision and Management, Creating WordPress Websites, and more.

Register by June 30 to take advantage of this special offer. For more information, click here.

On June 1, the National Association for the Education of Young Children will launch Virtual Institute. It’s a free series of newly recorded presentations open to everyone; early childhood professionals, advocates, families, and supporters who are interested in early childhood education.

The Virtual Institute runs for six weeks, starting June 1, 2020, and ending July 10, 2020. New presentations will be released every Monday.

There will be more than 100 presentations from a diverse selection of topics with presenters from all sectors of the industry. Presenters include policy experts, higher education faculty, school leaders, researchers, and educators.

Attendees will receive a certificate of attendance for each presentation they view. To learn more about this NAEYC professional development opportunity, click here.

CHILD CARE AWARE OF AMERICA — This is an uncertain time for child care providers, as they make difficult decisions about what’s best for their business and the families and community they serve. It is also an uncertain time for families as they make decisions about child care.

The safety and well-being of staff, family members and children is of utmost importance.

To learn more about how the child care field and Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) agencies can support and encourage providers, click here.

Here are more resources from Child Care Aware of America:

State by State Resources: CCAoA’s Interactive Map: What’s the official word from our state about child care policy changes, closures, and re-openings? Use an interactive map for information on statewide child care statuses. The map is updated daily and also available in Spanish.

Staying Safe In All Measures: Child care providers: COVID-19 is here, and severe spring weather has already arrived in certain parts of the country. Have you updated your child care emergency plan to reflect how you’ll respond to severe weather events during the pandemic?

Community Development Fund Institutions (CDFI) Help Child Care Programs: CDFIs focus on expanding economic opportunity for people, businesses and communities that may be underserved by mainstream financial institutions. CCR&Rs can partner with CDFIs to create and expand training for providers on business capacity building, accessing grants and loans during COVID-19, and much more. Check out our resource about the many ways these partnerships could benefit providers.

Webinar: States’ Response to COVID-19 and Child Care – Part 4: Part 4 of the State Response to COVID-19 webinar series will be on Thursday, May 14, from 1:00 -2:00 p.m. EDT. In this webinar, we’ll hear from agencies in Oregon and California and learn how they are responding to the coronavirus. at the decisions these states have made about child care: emergency care, supporting providers and families, and more. Register Now.

Rebuilding Child Care Systems: As child care programs and child care systems rebuild, we have an opportunity to address the diversity of the workforce and support providers who reflect the children, families and communities they serve. View this recorded webinar, Spotlights On Innovative Practices: Supporting a Diverse Early Childhood Workforce: Lessons Learned from a Community of Practice for an exploration of the issues.

Version 4.3 of the Provider Portal User Guide, that provides a step-by-step guide to navigating the Provider Portal, is now available. To download, click here.

New in this version: New text and screenshots for SR & VPK Contract Amendments. New screenshots for Manage Contracts.

The purpose of the document is to provide Provider Portal users with a reference document to successfully navigate and perform business processes included in Release 4.3 of the Provider Portal.

The May 2020 edition of CCR&R Resources for Families and Providers from the Florida Office of Early Learning focuses on activities, tips, and information about the importance of young children’s social and emotional development and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic. To download, click here.

Due to the current crisis (COVID-19) and the Stay-At-Home Order, the Instructor-Led DCF State-Mandated Classes for the upcoming months will be offered as virtual-interactive online classes that will give students the opportunity to interact with an instructor online as outlined for the instructor-led class requirements.

The virtual classes will be guided by an instructor online and will allow for student participation. For further details, please contact the 4C Education Department at 407-532-4158.

The National Association for the Education of Young Children offers online professional development that introduces early childhood educators to core ideas from NAEYC’s position statements, books, journals, and more.

Designed with busy educators in mind, NAEYC’s online resources provide self-paced, interactive learning that connects professional knowledge to daily practice through practical strategies that bolster best instructional approaches.

Online learning is the perfect complement to your existing professional development plan. Highlights from NAEYC’s courses include:

• Research-based content that is aligned with NAEYC’s standards
• An interactive learning experience
• A self-paced format
• An affordable solution for individuals or groups

To get started on NAEYC Online Learning, click here.

Early Childhood Educator INCENTIVE$, an affiliate of Child Care WAGE$, rewards early childhood educators with financial incentives based on their education and continuity of employment.

By retaining the early childhood workforce, INCENTIVE$ provides children with more stable relationships and better-educated teachers. INCENTIVE$ addresses individual professional development efforts and low wages but does not affect budgets, regular wages, or parent fees within the child care program.

INCENTIVE$ is licensed by Child Care Services Association of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and administered by the Children’s Forum under a contract with local early learning coalitions, children’s services councils, and private contributors.

Through these partnerships, INCENTIVE$ is enhancing professional development of early childhood educators in the state of Florida to improve the quality of care and education for the children in their classrooms.

To learn more about INCENTIVE$ or to become a participant, contact them at 888-352 4453 or incentives@thechildrensforum.com.